


Chapter 1

by coffee_and_wolfsbane



Series: Odette/Valdemar [1]
Category: The Arcana (Visual Novel)
Genre: Arcana Main Characters, Corpses, F/M, Fanfiction, Female Apprentice (The Arcana), Magic, Mild Gore, Other, fan apprentices, the arcana - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-03
Updated: 2019-10-03
Packaged: 2020-10-06 16:34:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20510105
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coffee_and_wolfsbane/pseuds/coffee_and_wolfsbane
Summary: Valdemar seeks out human advice on how to keep a new apprentice.





	Chapter 1

"Kyoko! You have a...uh...customer?" 

Kyoko looked up from the silk she was working on at the announcement from her familiar. Regis was in his human form, and his head and messy hair poked out from the doorjam as he peered at her, his expression worried. His thoughts brushed up against her mind, and she automatically lowered her mental defenses, letting him in. 

_What's wrong?_ Kyoko asked him. Since becoming her familiar, Regis was the face behind her counter, and he loved greeting people and selling his creations. He had no reason to be nervous; the entire town of Vesuvia was infatuated with him. Plus, he had more than proven his worth in battle when the grave hag attacked her. 

_I don't know. I don't think it's human._ Regis licked his lips anxiously. _But it asked for you specifically._

Kyoko nodded, and gave her familiar a reassuring pat on his shoulder. _ Anything that walks through that door can't hurt us without great effort, remember?_ Kyoko told him gently. _I showed you how the runes work. Now come on, let's go see what the customer wants._ Internally, she chided herself for forgetting something so important. She often dealt with non-human clientele or members of the Fae. She should have warned her familiar that he would encounter non-humans. 

When she rounded the corner and got to the main area of her shop, she understood immediately why Regis was so on edge. Sitting at the table she had set up next to the fireplace, sipping some of Regis' special blend of tea, was Quaestor Valdemar. They wore the same pointed headdress and white lab coat that they always wore, and their eyes were alien and unblinking as they looked around the inside of her store. 

"Valdemar," Kyoko greeted them with a slightly forced smile. "It's a surprise to see you out during the day. You usually leave your requests in the box." 

"Miss Kaer Vaen." Valdemar inclined their head slightly towards her. "Your guard dog seems to think my presence is a threat." 

Regis twitched beside her, and Kyoko's tone sharpened. "Regis is not my guard dog. He's my familiar. Regis, this is Quaestor Valdemar; they works at the palace as head medical officer. Valdemar, my familiar Regis." 

Recognition flicked across Regis' paling face. "Ilya's old boss?" he whispered. 

Valdemar grinned, showing off their needlepoint teeth. "None other." 

Kyoko felt fear course through her familiar, and she gave Valdemar a glare. "If you're satisfied with introductions, Valdemar, then tell me what you need from me." 

Valdemar set the cup down and raised their hand in a gesture of peace. "I actually need your assistance once again, Miss Kaer Vaen. Not in your usual areas of expertise, but in a more...personal matter," they finished after tilting their head to the side to consider their words. Valdemar motioned for her to join them at the small wooden table. 

Kyoko's eyebrows flew up at the words _personal matter_, and she sat down. She had a work history with Valdemar as partners, not apprentice and master, so she understood them a little better than his other underlings. Valdemar was all about their work. Valdemar didn't _do_ personal. Their entire personal life was that underground laboratory they stayed hidden in until they needed more bodies or better scalpels. 

Regis placed a cup of hot chocolate in front of Kyoko and proceeded to shift back into his natural form, settling against the fireplace with his eyes trained on Valdemar. The Quaestor gave no notice to the attention. "What's your personal matter?" Kyoko asked. 

Valdemar steepled their fingers together. "I need your help in finding an apprentice." 

"An apprentice?" Kyoko asked in shock. "What happened to your medical students? Or the doctors you wanted to train?" 

"All useful while the plague was still running strong. But now, I find myself wanting to focus on one brain to enhance, not dozens." Valdemar sighed, and it sounded like a cold breeze through a boneyard. "Although, I have an unforeseen complication. For the last eight humans, each apprentice I've hired has left before the end of the first night." 

"You've had _eight_ apprentices abandon their position?" Kyoko repeated. Valdemar might be freakish, but a position for apprentice to the head medic at the palace should have been fought over. 

_Shocking,_ Regis grumbled from the floor. _Did you show them the scarab pit first, or did you start the tour with the torture racks?_

"Regis," Kyoko warned him. She turned her attention back to Valdemar. "Did they say why they left?" 

_Fled, more like it--_

"Regis!" Kyoko said, her tone exasperated. "You're not helping. Return to my shadow if you can't keep your snarky comments to yourself." She heard her familiar grumble a few more comments, mostly about Valdemar, but he fell silent. 

"No, they didn't say why they refused service." Valdemar shrugged, the rest of their body inhumanly still as they gazed at her. "So I am here. You have worked with me longer than any other subordinate. You didn't run. I was hoping you could share some knowledge on my situation." 

Kyoko tapped her fingers against the side of her mug. "The apprentices you taught briefly...did they meet your expectations?" she asked. 

"Utterly disappointing. For human standards, too," Valdemar replied instantly. 

Kyoko gently nipped her bottom lip with her teeth to stop the laugh that wanted to come out at his comment. "Well, we don't want that happening again," Kyoko mused. 

Valdemar gave her their 'misunderstanding' head tilt. "So the first thing to do is to figure out how a potential apprentice could meet your human standards," Kyoko explained. "Why don't you tell me what you'll delegate to your apprentice during a night of work." She dug out a leaf of paper and a pencil and began making notes. 

"They will mostly be doing the busy work. Drawing diagrams of dissections, labeling, handling any chatter or inpatients that would distract me from my real art," Valdemar said after a brief pause. 

"So you're looking for someone with artistic talent who's good with people," Kyoko finished for him. 

"Precisely." Valdemar grinned at her again, and she answered with a small smile. 

"Do you care if the apprentice is male or female?" Kyoko asked, writing down what he had told her in shorthand.

"They need to be able to function. Their body has no consequence." Valdemar stopped again, and then added, "A strong constitution would be preferable. Out of the eight, two experienced dizziness and nausea, and three feinted." 

Kyoko's eyebrows went up again, but she didn't say anything. "Do you want them to have any previous magic experience? Or are you willing to take in a brand new apprentice?" 

Valdemar waved away the suggestion with an irritated gesture. "I don't have time to teach the basics." 

Kyoko got up and stretched, her back letting out a sharp crack from sitting so long. She started to pace around the room as she went over her notes to herself, muttering as she walked. "There really isn't any way to determine someone's constitution without a physical exam, which would definitely get you arrested if you forced them to. It's not unheard of to ask someone to demonstrate their magic, so that can be done. If eight apprentices have already ran out, then word has spread too, and that makes it harder to find someone to come interview in the first place. What you need is--" 

Kyoko stopped mid-step, and turned to Valdemar. "What you need is preliminary screening. Someone to filter out the ones that won't be able to handle you, and send you the ones who can for the final interview." 

"Handle me?" Valdemar repeated with indignation, a black brow arching up. 

"Yes, handle you, Val, keep up," Kyoko said, still wrapped up in her thoughts. "I'll do it." She faced Valdemar with triumph. "I know the attitude and personality it will take to work with you. This way, no other apprentices get scarred for life--" 

"_Scarred for life?_" 

"--and you don't have to keep wasting time." Kyoko began hunting through her things behind the counter, creating a pile for what she would need the next day. "I'll put up some notices tomorrow morning, and by nightfall we'll do the interviews at your lab. No, no, no, you don't need to do a thing," Kyoko interrupted as Valdemar tried to say something. "Just do what you normally do, and wait for me to bring in a possible apprentice tomorrow night." 

Kyoko began ushering Valdemar out the door, despite their several attempts at protesting. Once they was outside on her doorstep, she added, "And try not to do anything too bloody. Keep it light, or we're doing this all over again." Before she shut the door, she saw the incredulous look on Valdemar's face, and this time the laughter bubbled out. 

Quaestor Valdemar stood outside Kyoko Kaer Vaen's shop, their mouth still slightly open with their response to Kaer Vaen's plan still in their throat. They watched the door shut with a solid thud, and the protective runes the young magician had set up flared to life, shining a vivid crimson before fading to blend in with the grain of the wood.

"Try not to do anything too bloody," Valdemar scoffed. They turned and briskly walked back towards the entrance to the palace, their arms behind their back and their head inclined forward slightly in thought. "Only Kaer Vaen would put such a restriction on my work."

Odette Boucher was running late. 

As she slammed her kneecap into something blunt and sharp at the same time, she bit her bottom lip and tried not to curse. She quickly centered the two plans on the coffee table that were wobbling towards the edge, muttering a quick apology. She had gotten too caught up with shopping at the new herb stall that came in and lost track of time. Now she was scrambling to get dressed in the shade of twilight, throwing on loose pants and a sleeveless top in under a minute. She threw her runebook, her coinpurse, and a few sprigs of heather into her bag before slipping on flats. 

"Forrest?" Odette called out to her vine snake familiar. She spotted him laying flat against the eave of the window, trying to soak up the last warmth of the sunset. "Come on, we're gonna be late!" She extended her arm and Forrest slipped onto her wrist, curling around her arm. His emerald-green body glinted in the rays, and his forked tongue tested the air. 

"Hold on, we gotta hustle," Odette said, and she left her apartment. The docks were quiet as she beat feet to the palace, the seagulls unusually silent. Odette approached the guard, stated her purpose, and continued her hustling, refusing to think about the weird looks she got from the gate guards. She didn't want to be reminded that she looked like a wreck, especially for something as important as an apprenticeship.

Odette was escorted to the palace library, where she went down what seemed like endless steps. A few other people passed her going back up in a hurry, and Odette guessed they were applicants, just like her. Once she reached the bottom, a lone figure was waiting. A female stepped out from the shadows, and Odette had to suck back a breath. The magical aura this woman gave off was astounding. She wore a kimono-style dress that draped and clung to her body. Odette felt shrews eyes give her a once-over, and Odette had to kick herself into motion. 

"Hi! I'm Oddie!" she greeted the woman cheerfully, and shook her hand firmly. "I'm here for the apprenticeship!" 

"Oddie...Odette Boucher?" the female said, returning the handshake. "You're right on time." 

"Oh, good. I was so worried I was going to be late," Oddie gushed. "Are you the one who posted the flyer?"

The woman gave a small frown. "Yes, but I'm here as a first-line of defense. If you can pass my approval, you'll go on to the one who will be your master." 

Oddie was nodding along. "So that long line of rejects couldn't pass, hmm? Well, there isn't a test that could fail Oddie Boucher. Shall we?" she asked brightly. 

The woman's expression didn't change much, but Oddie felt like she had cleared up an unspoken concern. "I am Kyoko Kaer Vaen. Please, after you," Kyoko said, gesturing to the large door. Black metal struts crossed it in a square pattern, and Oddie wondered what was behind it. Kyoko led her into a small room that looked like an enlarged coat closet. Metal hooks lined the wall on one side, and on a few hung white coats dotted with dried blood. A makeshift table and two chairs were set up next to another door that was identical to the one they just walked through. Kyoko motioned for her to sit, and Kyoko joined her. 

_The actual employer must be beyond that wall,_ Oddie thought with excitement. She couldn't wait to meet them. "Ask me anything!" 

Kyoko nodded, and a little smile was playing across her lips. "Okay, Oddie. Do you have any experience with magic?"

Oddie nodded. "I learned when I was just a kid, I always made plants grow more. I started talking to the different flowers and herbs my grandmother's garden, and it just took off from there. Suddenly I knew precisely what kind of water, soil, or sunlight a plant wanted to thrive. Then I moved on to herbs, and combining them with medicine to create poultices and, recently, healing runes.

"Healing runes?" Kyoko repeated. "You can do healing magic?" 

Odette smiled proudly. "Let me show you!" Oddie dug around in her bag for a second before revealing her runebook. She tore off one of the first pages, that could heal a cut or a bruise. The runes were traced onto thin sheets of paper that were for tattoo transfer designs. Symbols created a collective ring with alchemical formulas that Odette had worked on for months to get right. She stood and lifted up her pants leg and revealed her freshly-bruised knee (that had already turned purple) and propped it on the table, so Kyoko could watch. 

"Just like all things in magic, the bigger the result you want, the more energy it will take. I just got this bruise this morning, so healing it will take a little effort. The more elaborate the wound, the more elaborate the rune. I've designed it so that anyone with magical capabilities can use it, if they have the stamina," Odette added. "All you do is take some of this cream--it helps adhere the tracing to your skin, just like you're getting a tattoo--and apply it to the area. Then, smooth this page over, and press firmly. When you lift the paper, you have to be careful of smudging, or the rune's wasted." Odette peeled back the paper and discarded it to the side. 

"Now you just put some will into it, like you're closing a magic circle." Oddie placed her palms below and above her knee. She closed the circle, and the blue ink on the rune glowed a brilliant yellow for a few seconds before being absorbed into her skin. She wiped off the excess cream and revealed her healed knee. "And tada!" she announced. "Good as new!" 

Kyoko leaned in, her fingertips brushing against the healed skin. "Interesting," she said under her breath. "How complicated do these runes get?" 

Odette lowered her leg and flipped to the back of the journal. "This one took a while. It's not easy to find willing patients to test it on, so I've mostly been testing the runes on any injuries I get myself. It can't grow back any limbs, but it will stop any major organ trauma. Think multiple stab wounds, compound fractures." 

To Oddie's surprise, Kyoko let out a snort of laughter. "I know someone that gets stabbed more than a knife sharpener that would be impressed by this. And I'm impressed, too." Kyoko looked from the rune to Odette. "What made you want to get into medicine?" 

Odette's smile faded, but she huffed out a breath and ran a hand through her unruly curls. "My grandmother. She raised me and my sisters, but she got sick when I was about twelve. No one could figure it out. It attacked her lungs, making her cough up blood, and she was so weak she could barely sit up in bed. She stopped eating and lost so much weight, it felt like she was wasting away before us." Odette cleared her throat as she quickly wiped away the unshed tears in her eyes. "If only I had known back then what I know now...I don't want anyone else to go through that." 

Kyoko hesitated before reaching out and rubbing Odette's shoulder soothingly. "That's a very good reason, Oddie. Do you have training in formal medicine?"

Oddie shook her head. "Right now, I only give out teas and poultices. I do wound dressing changes to anyone who comes by, but I want to be able to do more. That's why, with bring apprentice to the head medical officer, I think I can do so much good." 

Kyoko tapped her finger against her lips for a minute before asking, "This job will require dissection and diagrams based off of those specimens. Can you do that?" 

"Yes," Odette replied. "I keep a book of all the herbs and flowers and plants that I find, and I have detailed drawings of them all." 

Kyoko made a noise of approval. "How would you describe yourself as a worker?" 

"I'm happy to help in any way I can! I always find something to do, and I love talking and meeting new people." 

Kyoko smiled fully this time, and took Odette's hands in hers. "I think you're perfect for them," Kyoko said, still grinning. and squeezed her palms. "Come, I'll introduce you." 

"So I have the apprenticeship?" Oddie squeaked. 

"Yes. Now come on, put on this and let's go in. I asked them not to do anything too horrific, but honestly with Val, you never know what they might be doing." Kyoko helped her shrug into a fresh white lab coat and then the other female's hands were brushing through Oddie's hair. "This look suits you. Your hair is beautiful, it looks like a halo. Alright. Don't let them intimidate you or push you around. You're not some subordinate med student, you're an apprentice." 

A shiver of nervousness ran down Oddie's spine. "How should I... what should I do?" she whispered anxiously as Kyoko began to open the door. 

Kyoko looked back at her, and there was a glint of mischief in her eyes. "Just be yourself, Oddie." 

"I'll take my 'thank you' early, Val," Kyoko announced as she walked into the main operating theater. "I've found your new apprentice." Kyoko gave Odette an encouraging smile. 

Odette walked into a chamber that looked old, older than the palace on top of it. On a platform was a solitary operating table, and it had one person bent over it. The person, Val, was tall. So tall that he was bent over at the waist to be close enough to the object they were running a scalpel down, and their arm wasn't wavering or shaking. Their hand kept going as their head turned to look first at Kyoko, then at her. 

Dark, black irises bored into her, and Odette felt the pressure of something much more powerful and dangerous ebb from the person on the platform. 

_Those eyes._ Odette thought with a suppressed shudder. _Their eyes look so cold._

So, Oddie did what her grandmother would do. She marched past a smirking Kyoko and right onto that platform, beside the one who would be her master. The person straightened to his full height to positively glower at her. 

"What illness do you have that makes you think you can interrupt--" Valdemar started with a snarl. 

Oddie snatched the scalpel out of their hand, and placed it next to the limb he had been cutting through. She then grabbed the man by the back of the head, forced their chin onto her shoulder, raised herself on her tiptoes and wrapped her hands around their back as far as she could, squeezing them into a tight hug. 

Oddie could feel their glare turn from her to Kyoko as their head shifted on her shoulder towards the other female. 

"Valdemar, I'd like you to meet Odette Boucher. She's going to be your new apprentice." Oddie couldn't see Kyoko, but she could hear the laughter in the female's voice. 

Odette planted her palms on Valdemar's broad shoulders and pushed them back, but kept a firm grip on him. She looked him right in those cold, lonely eyes, and said, with her brightest smile, "Call me Oddie!" 

_Regis, quick, take a look,_ Kyoko called out in her mind to her familiar. She didn't want him to miss the dumbstruck look on Quaestor Valdemar's face as the tiny Odette strutted right onto their podium and embraced him.

_What, did Valdemar try something--whoah, who's hugging the shark?!_ Kyoko let out another snort of laughter at Regis' exclamation as he watched the scene unfold through her eyes. Oh, yes. Odette was the right choice. Kyoko had to compose her face as Val's head moved stiffly to send her an incredulous, blank look. As she introduced the woman, she could see the gears whirring in Valdemar's head as they tried to figure out the fastest path away from the human hugging him. Odette saved them though, but didn't let go of them, her hands planted firmly on their shoulders. 

"Call me Oddie!" the young woman said, and her smile was blinding with affection and happiness. 

_Wow,_ Regis breathed. _They're stunned stupid. Are you sure she isn't too...fragile? She looks so small,_ he fretted. 

_I think she'll be able to handle him pretty well_, Kyoko drawled. She hesitated before asking, _ How's Ilya? Is he...is he still mad?_

Kyoko could sense Regis' apologetic glance towards Julian as the two relaxed by the fireplace in her shop. _Not mad, no. Like me, I think. More concerned than angry._

She sighed quietly. _ I'll be home soon._ She felt Regis disconnect from her thoughts, and she glanced over to see Oddie straightening Val's lab coat, chattering away while Val tried to ease away from her constantly-moving hands. She felt the smallest pang of sympathy, but that was quickly washed away as Val began actually backing away from their new apprentice.

"Oddie, are you ready to begin tonight?" Kyoko asked, and out of the corner of her eye, she saw Val's head whip around to scowl at her. 

"Of course! I brought everything I need. What would you like me to start on, Val?" Oddie asked, her eyes practically shining with anticipation. 

For the first time since meeting him--and the first time in their very long life, probably--Kyoko saw Valdemar stutter. 

"I--you--you--you will finish up my dissection and catalog any abnormalities you find beneath the flesh," Valdemar spat out. 

"Of course, Val!" Oddie answered with a pretty little bob of a curtsy. She took her journal, a charcoal pencil, and a sprig of an herb out from her bag and headed up to the platform. She placed a chair so she could sit while she worked, and she picked up the scalpel and continued where Valdemar had left off. 

"A word out in the corridor, Kyoko," Valdemar hissed before stalking out the door. As it shut behind them with a definite bang, Odette looked up, concerned. 

"Are they always this grumpy?" Oddie asked. 

Kyoko laughed again. _Valdemar, grumpy._ "No, Oddie, they're just a little antisocial. But I think you'll be able to bring them out of their century-old funk." She followed Valdemar out, raising her mental defenses so she was cut off from Regis, and before the door had closed behind her, Valdemar had her pinned against the wood, their red eyes furious, one arm against her throat, and the other hand was pressed against the door beside her head.

"Was my request a joke to you?" Valdemar snarled.

Kyoko rested her hand on the forearm that was cutting off her air supply. "Let me go, Val," she said quietly. "I don't know Oddie very well, but if she thinks you're hurting me, I don't think she'll hold back." 

Valdemar's expression was still volcanic, but they dropped the arm that was against her throat. "That....thing needs to leave. Now," they said in a clipped tone. 

"Her name is Odette," Kyoko said icily, "and what's your reason for firing her before you even know her? Or her capabilities?" 

"She's too delicate. She's half my size, for fuck's sake. She won't last in my laboratory."

"Give her a week, Val," Kyoko said, crossing her arms. "If you aren't satisfied with her performance, then...then _I'll_ apprentice under you." 

Valdemar leaned back, eyeing her with doubt. "You're well beyond the level of an apprentice, Kaer Vaen." 

She gave Valdemar a heavy sigh. "Then we'll be work partners again." 

Valdemar was silent for a while, before saying very quietly, "It's my understanding that you and Doctor 0-6-9 are work partners." 

Kyoko fought the blush that slowly crept onto her cheeks. "Even if Julian and I aren't working together, we're still _together_, Val. And that should tell you how confident I am that Odette is a good fit for you."

Valdemar fixed their gaze over at the door, as if they could see through it to the female who was in the next room. "One week," he growled. 

She gave him a half-smile. "One week," she agreed. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have two audience members waiting at home who are very eager for my description of your face when Oddie hugged and cuddled you." 

Valdemar opened their mouth again to bark out that if she ever told anyone what happened she would end up as the beetles' next meal, but Kaer Vaen had already slipped past them and was heading up the long staircase...leaving them to go back and tell the girl about the week probationary period. 

Valdemar had never been keen on human emotions. Too distracting. So they couldn't place or name what sensation settled in their chest when they opened the door and found the girl sitting cross-legged in the chair, humming loudly to herself as she worked on her page. Valdemar knew it was curiosity that had them walking over to see how well she had vivisected the right arm they'd been working on before she and Kaer Vaen interrupted him. The girl was so engrossed in her sketch that she didn't notice they were standing over her shoulder. Valdemar could also name something along the lines of skepticism as they got a look at what the girl had done. The arm was positioned palm down, and the skin from the top of the hand was neatly removed and pinned to the side. She hadn't nicked a single cord or ligament, and they could see how the tendons attached to the bones of the fingers and ran back up the hand to the bones and muscles of the palm and wrist. They didn't see a single hesitation cut. The girl's last name could be translated as 'butcher', and at first sight, the little human female looked like anything but someone who cut up animals and meat. From what Valdemar was looking at, she was at the very least capable with a blade, and they could name relief that they wouldn't have to waste time teaching her dissection techniques.

Valdemar turned their attention to the diagram she was drawing. This time, Valdemar felt shock. It looked like they were staring at a duplicate hand on the paper, and they was tempted to reach out and touch it to make sure their vision was working right. Without thinking, they were leaning closer and running a finger over the middle tendon of her drawing.

The girl froze in surprise for a second, then craned her head to look up at Val. "Is this alright?" she asked, waving a hand over the vivisection and the diagram. "You'd just started, so I didn't know how deep you wanted me to go." 

"Acceptable," Valdemar said shortly.

The girl beamed again, the smile on her face causing Valdemar to shift uncomfortably. Before she could say anything, they quickly added, "You will have a one-week tentative apprenticeship. If you meet my expectations, I'll take you as my apprentice full-time."

"I'll be sure to do my best!" The girl leaned back in her chair and dusted the excess charcoal from her lap. Her brown curls glinted in the candles that lit up the room and Vadelmar noticed, for some unknown reason, that her eyes were a few shades lighter than her hair. 

"It won't be an easy week. If you show any signs of balking, you'll fail," they informed her sharply. 

The girl hooked an unruly curl behind her ear. "Honestly, I expect nothing less than the head of medicine at the palace," she said. "If I wasn't serious about this position, I wouldn't be here." 

Valdemar considered her words, but before they could address her comment, they spotted a ring around her wrist that was moving. Before they could stop himself, they had closed their hand around her wrist and was bringing it closer to them to examine. 

"Oh! That's Forrest. He's my familiar," she explained, without snatching her arm back, Valdemar noticed. Even Kaer Vaen had a hard time not flinching away from their cold touch. "He's a vine snake. He has bad separation anxiety, so he usually stays pretty close to me and naps. He won't interfere with my work, though. In a few ways, he helps."

"Familiars seem like too much work for too little return. How could a reptile help?" Valdemar asked skeptically. The serpent in question turned its head to look at them, and Valdemar offered him a finger to get their scent. A delicate forked tongue lapped out a few times before the familiar returned to his position.

"Snakes have these little channels in their noses that help sense heat. Since it can be hard for human touch to detect a fever, he's useful for picking out low-grade fevers that would go undetected," Odette explained. 

Valdemar arched his brow at her answer. "That's more useful when the bodies are alive." 

Odette tilted her head to the side as she thought. "True. But a snake's nose is sensitive to more than just heat, and with a little training I can teach Forrest to be able to track different illnesses or diseases in bodies, so we know what we're getting into before cutting."

"As long as it doesn't interfere with my work or the tasks I give you, you're permitted to use the lab in any way you choose," Valdemar said. "Come. Your temporary desk is over here," they said, stepping down from the platform and walking towards the rows of tiny cells. Their personal desk was set up in front, and they motioned towards a cell directly behind him. "I rarely get any live patients, so if they do come down, you'll deal with them first. If you're incapable of handling it, then bring them to me." 

"Of course, Val," Odette said. 

_She's picked up on Kaer Vaen's annoying habit already,_ Valdemar thought with a grimace. Although, if it was between 'Val' and 'Master', they preferred the shortened version of their name.

The clock in the hall outside chimed, and Valdemar turned to her. "I'm getting a few new bodies within the hour. I want the remaining dissection tables cleaned, and the instruments and tray from the limb disinfected, too. I'm going to bring them here now."

"Of course, Val," Odette said in the same cheerful tone with the huge smile, and Valdemar scowled at her in response. 

In a small shop at the edge of the marketplace, Kyoko activated the runes that guarded her home and slipped inside. Regis was in his lupine form and asleep next to the fireplace, which had burned down to softly glowing embers. Julian had coffee in one hand and was writing something down with the other. When he heard the door open, he looked up at her and gave her a burning once-over, concern etched on his face. 

"Did Valdemar behave?" Julian asked in a tone that suggested of Val hadn't, the medical officer was going to be bleeding in a ditch somewhere. Julian set down his mug and rose to greet her, pulling Kyoko into his arms and against his chest. His lips brushed against her temple, her cheek, and then finally against her mouth. 

"They behaved. Although Val's going to be planning for some revenge, now," Kyoko said with a laugh. She cuddled closer, enjoying the scent of sage and wolfsbane on his skin, her hands snaking around his waist to hold him close. 

"What did you do?" Julian leaned back and stared at her warily, his hands running down her sides. 

"I gave Valdemar an apprentice that's a challenge. She's perfect, Ilya, and she's going to drive them _insane_." 

"By the Eight," Julian muttered, and he rested his chin on the top of her head. "Should we make sure Val hasn't killed her in a few days?" 

"Oh, I think she's got this handled," Kyoko mused, tilting her head up to capture Julian's lips with her own.


End file.
